Ethical Dilemmas In Prisons

Words: 670
Pages: 3
Open Document
Jails and prisons are filled with unethical people that have made bad choices. Unfortunately, those convicted are not the only unethical people inside these prison walls. Some prison guards and prison employees also make unethical choices. They abuse that power bestowed upon them. Both sides, convicted individuals and prison officials, learn to manipulate this environment. There are also ethical dilemmas unique to the prison setting; health services (mentally and physically), solitary confinement, strip and cavity searches, overcrowding, etc. The United States is less than 5% of the world’s population but has the largest prison population in the world. Per an article in the Prison Policy Initiative, the “American criminal …show more content…
Under the Eighth Amendment, correctional facilities are legally mandated to provide adequate health care. Unfortunately, inmates do not always receive the medical care they need and are entitled to. About one-third of the prison population suffers from health issues such as diabetes, high blood pressure, HIV, heart problems, etc. that require regular attention. Some of this is contributed to the fact that older inmates are the fastest growing group of our prison population. Just because a person is incarcerated should not change the level of care they receive. With the growing number of people incarcerated, underfunding and understaffing of medical professionals are being blamed for not being able to handle the demand. This causes in many cases inmates to suffer needlessly from the lack of adequate medical care. Chronic illnesses that go untreated, can eventually result in death (ACLU, n.d.). Healthcare providers who work in the correctional setting also have an ethical responsibility for ensuring that the patients have access to the care they need. One of the most ethical concerns for these providers relates to showing respect, fairness, truthfulness and commitment to inmates in this type of environment. Our jails and prisons are filled with inmates in need of psychiatric care. Prisons are now one of the primary care providers for those with mental illness mainly due to lack of alternative facilities. This is ethically catastrophic in many ways. “Correctional medical facilities were never constructed with parity between physical and mental health abilities” (Dubler, N., 2014). Prison guards and personnel received minimal training on how to interact and handle mentally ill individuals. The problem correctional facilities must deal with is having adequate personnel to
Show More

Related Documents: Ethical Dilemmas In Prisons

Essay about Ethical Conflicts

Ethical Conflicts Sam Kennedy Grantham University Ethical Conflicts The assistant district attorney would create many ethical conflicts if he went to prison and while on probation. He would put many people in a moral and ethical dilemma from being such a high profile official. From trying to get special treatment to bribing guards there could be many ways this could be seen as having ethical conflicts. One of the ethical conflicts would be the special treatment that he would more…

Words 426 - Pages 2

Why Is It Ever Ethical To Falsify A Document

1. Do you think it is ever ethical to falsify a document? From the standpoint of carrying the thought that at some point in the future, a falsified document can catch up with you. Makes falsifying a document more of risk than the possible good that came as a result. Therefore, it is never ethical to falsify a document. Doing so manifest an ethical decision dilemma that is subject to personal cost. Akins et al (2007) state “Personal cost can mean the cost of friendship, monetary loss…

Words 502 - Pages 3

Ethical Dilemmas In The Military

Ethical Dilemma Throughout everyday life, people solve ethical dilemmas without realizing what they are. Ethics are principles that one follows in their life which also affects the behavior of an individual. The concepts of ethics falls into many structures that exist within one's life, such as in the business industry, but also the government and the military. The structures of these complex systems continue to work very well due to them being based on a legal perspective of ethics. Ethics are apparent…

Words 2162 - Pages 9

Psychiatry Ethical Issues

doubt face many hardships, trying times, extensive work hours, as well as difficult decisions to make. However, many people do not know that along with all of the other trials nurses may face on a daily basis, nurses may encounter many moral or ethical dilemmas in the work place. This is even more prominent amongst nurses who dare to venture into the specialty of psychiatric mental health nursing. A psychiatric mental health nurses duties include typical nursing duties you would see in any other medical…

Words 1127 - Pages 5

Short Paper #1

An Ethical Dilemma In this paper I will be discussing the ethical dilemma that Jan is faced with and what I think she should do concerning it. I will be explaining factors that contribute to employees not operating ethically in business and the steps that employees an take to make the most appropriate decision. Lastly, I will explain the steps an organization can take to ensure that all parts of the organization operate ethically. Jan is an employee for JLT Cincinnati, she works in the Human Resources…

Words 953 - Pages 4

702 Accountability Report Essay

An accountant face the ethical dilemma of reporting discovered accounting violations to the Financial Accounting Standards Board. While it is an ethical accountant’s duty to report such violations, the dilemma arises in the ramifications of the reporting. Government review of company financial records and the bad press caused by an accounting scandal could cause the company’s rapid decline and may lead to layoff of employees. Executives and other corporate officers could also face criminal prosecution…

Words 521 - Pages 3

Hello B11 Essay

were imprisoned in a "real" prison for five years or more, could you take it? This is another question that is hard to answer, because it’s really difficult to gauge how I would react in such an extreme environment. However, I do think I could endure the experience if it was set up like the experiment. I feel like if I knew it was an experiment, I would be able to get by just keeping in mind that it’s temporary, unlike some of the subjects did. I think in a real prison, I could survive physically…

Words 1974 - Pages 8

Examples Of Dilemmas In To Kill A Mockingbird

In the book, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee gives us many major dilemmas that has been solved through the ethics of their time period. Some have been solved through peaceful ways that isn’t made to hurt anyone. Then at other times, the decisions that have been made in the story didn’t make out to be the best in the end. The first example is when Atticus decides to defend the negro known as Tom Robinson. In chapter 9, Scout asked “Do all lawyers defend n-Negroes, Atticus?” (Lee 77). He says that…

Words 727 - Pages 3

Criminal Justice Essay

Ethics In Criminal Justice Current Date: 6 March 2013 Ethical Dilemma 1: Gun Rally I would support the right of the group to assemble and to recognize peacefully their 2nd Amendment rights. As long as they are not hindering businesses in their daily activities, harassing customers or bystanders and definitely not exceeding the noise ordinances for the city and surrounding area. The area where they assemble should be a public area but the size and capacity of the meeting area needs to be decided…

Words 1204 - Pages 5

Cjs211r1 Ethical Worksheetweek4 Essay

University of Phoenix Material Ethical Dilemma Worksheet Incident Review 1. What is the ethical issue or problem? Identify the issue succinctly. The ethical issue here is that the husband, who was also a prisoner of war and suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, may not be fit for an adult prison because the war experiences left him with the mentality of a 10 year old. 2. What are the most important facts? Which facts have the most bearing on the ethical decision presented? Include any…

Words 1037 - Pages 5